Aryna Sabalenka Gives Her Take on Emma Raducanu’s Coaching Problem

Aryna Sabalenka defeated Himeno Sakatsume to schedule a third-round clash with Jaqueline Cristian at Indian Wells.

Aryna Sabalenka Gives Her Take on Emma Raducanu’s Coaching Problem

Emma Raducanu and Aryna Sabalenka (Image via X/Game, Set & Talk, Tiempo De Tenis)

In Short
  • Aryna Sabalenka supports Emma Raducanu's decision to play without a coach until she finds the right fit.
  • Raducanu has re-hired Mark Petchey and is currently working with LTA coach Alexis Canter after parting ways with Francisco Roig.
  • Sabalenka expressed confidence in her ability to handle a best-of-five set format in Grand Slam events, citing her physical strength.

Aryna Sabalenka has backed Emma Raducanu‘s plan to play without a coach until she finds the right person to work with. Raducanu, since she burst onto the scene following her fairytale run at the 2021 US Open, has yet to find a coach with whom she can forge a strong partnership and has often made headlines due to her frequent chopping and changing of coaches.

Sabalenka understands Raducanu’s problem because she herself was struggling to find a proper coach and has often criticized the ones she worked with when she was a newcomer on the tour. Both Sabalenka and Raducanu are in Indian Wells and have won their opening-round matches. At the press conference, the Belarusian was asked whether she could also play without a coach.

For me, it would be difficult. But I feel like she has been struggling a lot with finding the right coach, the right fit for her. I think maybe for her it’s good to take this little break, not rushing, like, bringing just anyone in her team. That just makes more problems, I feel like, and insecurity, you don’t have your person around. I feel like maybe for her it’s a good decision, but I feel like she’s going to obviously end up having coach. I think she just needs to choose carefully the person that she’s gonna bring on her team.

Before kick-starting her Indian Wells campaign, the British ace re-hired Mark Petchey, with whom she worked for about four months last year. After parting ways with Rafael Nadal‘s former coach, Francisco Roig, Raducanu has been working with Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) coach and hitting partner Alexis Canter. In an interview before her Indian Wells campaign, Raducanu said it was not her but Roig’s decision to end the partnership after the Australian Open.

At Indian Wells, Raducanu knocked out Mananchaya Sawangkaew in her opening-round match to schedule a third-round match against two-time Grand Slam finalist Amanda Anisimova. The 25th seed holds a 2-1 head-to-head edge over Anisimova but lost their last match in last year’s Canadian Open round of 32.

Aryna Sabalenka on potentially playing best-of-five sets in the Grand Slam events

Craig Tiley, the former director of the Australian Open, wants the women to play the best-of-five set format from the quarterfinal onward in Grand Slam events. His suggestions received mixed reactions from the tennis world. Aryna Sabalenka was also asked to give her opinion during the pre-tournament press conference in Indian Wells.

Aryna Sabalenka (2)
Aryna Sabalenka (Image via Fox Sports)

Yeah, let’s do that. I feel like I would have probably more Grand Slams. I feel like physically I’m really strong, and I’m pretty confident that my body can handle that. So let’s do it.

Sabalenka finished as the runner-up in this year’s Melbourne event, losing in three sets to Elena Rybakina. She is chasing her second title of the season at Indian Wells, having defended her Brisbane International crown by beating Marta Kostyuk.

Well, I don’t know. I guess it’s a lot of fitness work to be done for others, but I feel like we’re in sport and we have to care about ourselves, and I feel like if they do it, I have huge advantage.

Aryna Sabalenka added

Sabalenka was defeated in the final of Indian Wells last year by Mirra Andreeva. But the four-time Grand Slam champion was successful in clinching the Miami Open by beating Jessica Pegula, winning her career’s first Sunshine Doubles singles title. Prior to arriving in Indian Wells, she skipped both the WTA 1000 in the Middle East Swing, the Qatar Open, and the Dubai Tennis Championships, where she did not have many points to defend.

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